Qantas, Airbus to invest $2 million in biofuel refinery

SYDNEY Reuters -- Qantas Airways Ltd and Airbus SE will jointly invest $2 million and $1.34 million in a biofuel refinery in Australia's Queensland state. The funds will be used for a feasibility study and early-stage development of the proposed facility, jointly developed by Jet Zero Australia and SAF technology firm LanzaJet, Qantas said on Thursday.

The refinery is expected to produce up to 100 million litres of SAF a year, with construction expected to start next year.

SAF is a biofuel that can be used to power aircraft with similar properties to conventional jet fuel, without the need to develop new planes or engines. It can be blended with conventional jet fuel and can reduce carbon emissions by up to 80%.

The feedstocks used to make SAF, including agricultural residue and wood mill waste, have less lifecycle emissions than conventional fuel, which is a benefit for the production process.

Qantas and Airbus set up a $200 million fund to help meet Qantas' goal of using 10% of SAF in its fuel mix by 2030, after the airline placed a multibillion-dollar order for Airbus narrowbody and widebody planes.

Qantas now sources SAF at overseas airports, including 10 million litres for flights out of London in 2023 and 20 million litres for flights out of California from 2025, due to the lack of a sustainable aviation fuel industry in Australia.

By 2030, the airline hopes to have 10% of its fuel from SAF by 2050 and 60% by 2050, to meet its target of net zero emissions by the year 2020.